Early Mornings, Late Afternoons, & Early Evenings
by grandmelon
Summary: my MakoHaru AU Week entries: Day 2 - Merman, Day 3 - Café/Coffee Shop, Day 7 - Open
1. Day 2

**Title:** Early Mornings  
 **Theme:** Merman  
 **Artist/Author:** melonmachinery (my tumblr)  
 **Adult Content:** Y/ **(No)**  
 **Warnings:** None  
 **Summary:**

Early mornings are always cold, and being young means not doing things without permission, but that doesn't stop Makoto when he has someone important to meet.

 **Pairings:** Makoto/Haruka

* * *

Early Mornings

"Haru-chan!" Makoto whispered out into the early morning air. "Haru-chan! Are you there?"

Makoto bounced on his feet, impatiently looking back at the empty beach, before he slipped off his shoes and socks. The sand was wet and cold on his feet, chilly to touch, but he couldn't get to the cove without taking them off since the water was still high. He stuffed his socks into his shoes and glanced once more out back towards the buildings.

It was just late enough that all of the early birds of the town, the fishers, were already gone, but early enough that normal people wouldn't be up. His parents would not be awake for another two hours since it was a weekend, and it was just the perfect chance to slip away. Still, he felt guiltiness swirl in his stomach when he'd leave. After all, eleven year olds should not be out on their own without permission.

But he couldn't ignore the beck and call of Haru's eyes every time he'd leave him. Even though he promised it would be the last time he'd deceive his parents, he'd still come running back to meet with his best friend. Life would be easier if the old woman who introduced them was still around, then he'd get to visit Haru whenever he liked.

Time was wasted on folding pant legs so Makoto rarely wore any to visit. He just had his shorts on, despite the chill in the air, and waded through the shin deep water around the rocks until he got inside the small cove. It wasn't a cove really, it was just a small enclosure with rather shallow water because of all the sand. The overhang of the rocks near the back kept out the light in the morning, like a small cave, but even on dark days Makoto wasn't scared of entering there.

When he reached the back wall he sat his shoes down on a ledge where the rocks had formed a natural shelf. He made sure they were wedged in enough that they would not drop before he got up onto the large rock that had been moved there as a seat. It was rather smooth, unlike the porous rocks around him. Makoto had been told that it had been a rock that was along the shore before the granny had moved it there when she was younger. It was her sitting rock, and now it was his sitting rock.

The older woman said she used to sit on it when she met with mermaids there, but Makoto had only met one, and he was his best friend.

Makoto's eyes began to droop as he waited patiently for his friend. He checked the time on his wristwatch, waterproof since the last three got submerged in what his parents thought were unfortunate accidents, and saw that it had already been forty minutes since he had arrived. His foot dropped into the water and it shocked him back into awareness, it felt like ice against his feet which were finally starting to warm up.

When the gentle waves were disturbed on their course to the back of the enclosure Makoto's eyes darted along the water's edge. He searched for a body moving underneath the surface and waited with baited breath when he caught glimpse of a darkness moving closer. The mass only got half way before a head peaked up and two arms propelled a torso out of the water.

"Haru-chan!" Makoto sighed with a smile. Haru used his arms and tail to push him up the sand more and he made his way next to Makoto. When he finally reached his destination he laid his head in his arms on the small dry spot of sand.

"I thought you weren't going to come," Haru said and Makoto chuckled.

"You always say that Haru," Makoto said with a grin. Haru's tail swayed back and forth in the shallow water, creating large ripples that'd hit against the walls. Makoto smiled as he watched the scales glistening and reflecting light in the same manner that the water did. They trembled and wavered.

"Are you tired Haru-chan?" Makoto asked, turning to his friend. He pulled up his knees so he could rest his face between them, hands covering his cold toes. "You look sleepy."

Haru's eyes slipped closed and there was silence between them. The sound of the water lapping against the rocks and the distant crashes of waves against the beach were the only things Makoto could hear.

"Went hunting," Haru answered before he flipped onto his back and reached out a hand that barely reached Makoto's toes. "No mackerel."

"Aw," Makoto sighed and he let his leg slip down so Haru could reach. Haru always had a strange fascination with his toes, though he felt that he could relate. Touching Haru's tail was something amazing, even though he wasn't allowed to very often.

"Other fish aren't as good," Haru mumbled as he dipped his fingers between the gap of Makoto's big toe and his second toe. He wormed his wet fingers in between the rest and Makoto giggled, twitching as it tickled, like always. Haru's hands were as cold as the water.

"Next time you'll find some," Makoto reassured. "Maybe next time I can bring you some."

Haru's nose flared just the slightest, and Makoto knew he thought it was funny. He grinned into his other knee and laughed when Haru's free hand came up to grab onto his foot to hold it firmly in place. Once or twice Makoto had accidentally kicked Haru because it tickled so much.

"Not like live ones, but cooked ones! I could buy you a can of it, maybe you'll like it," he explained. Haru looked up at him and then to the side instead of back at his foot. He got permission to try, at the very least.

Makoto started talking about little things, like how he visited the granny's grave and if Haru wanted he'd take a gift from him there. He also told him about his younger siblings and how they were doing. Haru would sometimes ask questions, like what kind of things he did at school. Makoto would always have to explain in lengths about some things since Haru couldn't understand their purpose. Drawing was something he was particularly interested in since permanent images weren't found below the sea.

They were silent for a while after Makoto finished recounting the week, Haru just playing with Makoto's toes, pulling them and running his fingers between them. A long time ago when he was smaller Haru would lick his feet, it was weird at first but the granny said it was fine as long as it didn't bother Makoto. Haru had once joked about eating his toes because they looked like small fish and actually bit at them.

It didn't hurt, it actually tickled, but Makoto was always a little worried that Haru would actually bite his toes after that so he was strictly band from touching his feet like that again. He always thought it was kind of gross anyways, but he accepted it because he didn't understand mermaid costumes. He also thought that maybe they weren't costumes at all but instead just Haru being weird, but he never bothered to ask.

When the sky started to brighten considerably Makoto looked down at the time and sighed. It was almost time for his parents to get up. Haru withdrew his hands as Makoto made to slide off the rock and into the damp sand.

"Leaving already?" Haru asked and Makoto gave a pathetic nod.

"Haru came so late this time," Makoto sighed, "I have to go now."

"Will you come tonight too?" Haru asked, grabbing his ankle before he could leave. Makoto looked down at him and then away, cheeks flushing.

"I, I'll try," he stuttered. "But my parents sometimes check on me at night so I don't know."

"Okay," Haru said, and he put his arms up. Makoto grabbed Haru just above his elbows and Haru did the same. He carefully pulled Haru around and down into the water where it was deep enough for him to move on his own, the water having receded some as the morning went on.

"Is here good?" Makoto asked and Haru nodded. They both let go and Haru used his arms and tail to whip himself out into the water. At the very entrance he stopped and waited for Makoto to grab his shoes.

He hurried over back to where he put them and grabbed the backs of his shoes tight in one hand before walking out to the entrance to meet Haru. Right before the turn out onto the beach Makoto stopped and squatted down on the sand. Haru pushed himself over to Makoto, just enough to keep his tail in the deeper section.

"Bye Haru-chan," Makoto whispered and Haru got up onto his hands and leaned up, waiting patiently with his eyes closed. Makoto gave him a quick goodbye kiss, something he had, admittedly, tricked Haru into giving him as of late. The kisses were always wet and cold, but they still made his heart stutter and his cheeks warm. "I'll try to come out, but it might be very late. How will I know when you'll come?"

"I'll watch," Haru answered and Makoto nodded.

"I'll see if I can get you some canned mackerel," he hummed before standing up and walking the last bit out of the cove. As he glanced back he saw Haru's head dipped under the water, a tiny wake left behind as he swam away and down into the ocean.


	2. Day 3

**Title:** Late Afternoons  
 **Theme:** Café/Coffee Shop  
 **Artist/Author:** melonmachinery (my tumblr)  
 **Adult Content:** Y/ **(No)**  
 **Warnings:** None  
 **Summary:**

Late afternoons are spent in a small little café between schools, talking to a recent stranger and wondering just how far Makoto wants to take things.

 **Pairings:** Makoto/Haruka

* * *

Late Afternoons

"Nanase-kun, you're here again," Makoto said with a bright smile as he walked over to the other. He barely got a glance as he walked over to the booth and placed his bags down across from him. "Is it alright if I sit here?"

The other man nodded, dark black bangs falling into his eyes. They grew out quite quick, Makoto noticed. He smiled at his new friend, acquaintance? Once more before going back to the line and waiting to get his coffee. Nanase Haruka was someone who frequented the small coffee shop that sat between the two biggest schools in the city. It was by happenstance that he met the other, one extra crowded day when Makoto had to make a choice between going home in the rain or try to wait it out.

Matsuoka Rin, one of the employees of his favorite shop and a fast friend through their frequent meetings on campus, had forced him to infringe on the other's personal space. It was awkward at first, but in a way he was grateful to Rin, since meeting Haruka was one of the more interesting aspects of his life as of late.

Haruka was a swimmer in high school, went to the same school with Rin and everything, but upon college he dropped it for the culinary arts. Rin attended the same school as Makoto, but the campuses in cities were so on top of each other, he's sure that the two of them chose those school's to stay close. Why else?

It was quite obvious they were very good friends, and Makoto would be lying to himself if he wasn't a little jealous. It's not that he didn't like his own friends, but there was a certain aura about Haruka. Was it an aura? Maybe it was just a feeling he got. Seeing him sitting there in the corner booth just made Makoto feel something, something warm and cold at the same time. There was a heat in his face and a warmth in his heart, but a cold and tight grip on his throat and he couldn't even begin to explain what it meant.

After he got his coffee he returned to the table and put away his thoughts. Haruka was drawing, something he'd do only from time to time, but he seemed to have an incredible talent for it. He only allowed himself a peak before politely returning to his own musings, pulling out his phone and answering the late texts he had gotten from his siblings. It was their first cellphones with texting and they would not stop writing him, though he did find it cute.

"The twins?" Haruka asked and Makoto looked up and smiled at him. He turned his phone over so he could see the small pixelated image of the two of them with a fat white cat between them.

"They've been feeding the stray cat a little too much," Makoto commented, ignoring the way his heart stuttered when Haruka wrapped his fingers around Makoto's to hold the phone steady. "I can't believe how big she's gotten."

Haruka just made a noise and released his hand, leaning back into his own space. Makoto pulled back his cellphone and felt the tingling prickles of goosebumps running down his arms. He might have lied a little bit before, he knew what this feeling meant, but he had no right to claim it as such. Haruka was just a person he enjoyed spending time with, he tried his best not to think any further than that.

They fell into silence, a comfortable one as Makoto picked out his planner from his backpack and scratched off the things he had successfully done before he had gotten to the coffee shop that afternoon. He also wrote down a few things he remembered, like to make sure to mail his parents and the twins something for the upcoming holiday, restock on lined paper and erasers, not to forget to go shopping for food before tomorrow.

"Are you free next week?"

Makoto blinked, three times, before he looked up at Haruka and saw that his sketchbook was put away and his backpack packed. He was getting ready to leave.

"Um, depends on the day I guess," Makoto answered. They had never once planned these meetings, so it was a little confusing and very new. After Makoto started to take notice of Haru he realized the other was almost there nearly every day, just like him, though some days Makoto couldn't stay while other's he had time to relax.

"Saturday," Haruka said and Makoto nodded, a smile brightening up his face. Belatedly he realized he should have said something instead of just nodding, but then Haruka grabbed his hand and all thoughts left him. He flipped his hand over and placed a folded piece of paper in it, curling Makoto's fingers around it, before he looked him in the eye once more.

Makoto's skin was on fire.

"Saturday at ten, if you're not busy, we could go to the pool," Haruka mumbled, turning his face towards the door. "Text me if you can make it."

And with that he left.

Makoto stared dumbfounded at the door before looking at the paper in his hands. He carefully unfolded it and saw in perfect handwriting Haruka's number and a small note underneath. His heart sounded like a wild drum beat in his ears.

 _You can call me Haru_


	3. Day 7

**Title:** Early Evenings  
 **Theme:** Open  
 **Artist/Author:** melonmachinery (my tumblr)  
 **Adult Content:** Y/ **(No)**  
 **Warnings:** None  
 **Summary:**

Early evenings are sweet and in an afterglow of a restless day, full of warmth and lazy bliss that makes it hard for Makoto to keep his eyes open.

 **Pairings:** Makoto/Haruka

* * *

Early Evenings

"Haru," Makoto yawned, eyes closing and nose scrunching up. Tiny drops of water were squeezed out of his eyes and he's hands itched to wipe them away. "Are you almost done?"

"Stop moving," he answered.

Makoto yawned again, unable to help himself. His eyes were completely glazed over and he tried to blink the welling pools away. When he couldn't take it any longer he picked up his hand and wiped them away quickly before placing his hand back down against the chair's arm. When he glanced over to his friend he saw the irritation behind his pursed lips.

"Haru, we've been here so long already, can't we take a break?" Makoto mused, trying best not to jostle his head out of its appointed position against the blanket folds that were under him. He didn't want to mess it up for Haru, after all he had put so much effort into setting this up. Makoto even had to change into new pajamas that Haru had bought for him.

"It's only been ten minutes," Haru replied, glancing down at his phone that was sitting to his side. He was sitting on the couch with a makeshift table out of pillows on his lap, sketching out the scene. It was for one of Haru's final projects during school, and Makoto wanted to help, but he had no idea that modeling was so tough.

Makoto tried his best to stay awake, but he had had such a long test earlier, and although his position wasn't completely comfortable with his legs all squished up onto the big armchair, it was certainly comfortable enough to be pulling him into unconsciousness.

The sound of Haru's pencil gliding over his sketchpad and the gentle wind that blew in through their window was going to put him out like a light if he wasn't careful. He tried to think of things he had to do later that week, or how Rin had mentioned that he'd be coming to visit at the end of the month. He tried to think of anything and everything before his focus returned to the sound of his friend drawing.

Haru's gaze was quick and fleeting on him at first, flicking back and forth from paper to figure in rapid sessions. It wasn't until the past few minutes that he had begun to slow down, taking extra time to observe things before putting them on paper, or taking extra time on the paper before looking up again. Makoto often wondered what Haru felt when he did this, what he was seeing, what he was thinking.

It was no secret that Makoto wasn't the best at drawing, but that didn't change his attraction to it. He loved how both naturally skilled and hardworking Haru was. Everyone thought that Haru was magic, that he could do things so naturally. Maybe he was, Makoto thought, but natural talent only takes you so far. He saw Haru's sketchpads and paintings to know it; this was something Haru worked on. Whether people knew it or not, Haru was probably one of the most ambitious people he knew, albeit subtly so.

"Stop that."

"Huh?" Makoto blinked, gaze focusing on Haru. Haru sighed, though there was a small curve in his lips before he flipped his sketchbook closed and got up, pillows throw to the side. Makoto sat up tentatively and let his legs unfold, feet dropping to the floor. He was surprised at the tingling sensation he felt, the blood running to his legs having been cut off for too long.

"You're supposed to be tired, not smiling," Haru said, a soft, amused tone to his voice. He held out a hand and Makoto took it, rising to his feet. The corners of Haru's eyes wrinkled and Makoto smiled back at him, surprised when a soft kiss was placed on his cheek. "Done for today, thank you."

"Mm, sure thing Haru-chan," Makoto answered, shocked by the proclamation. Haru gave him a quick glare and Makoto chuckled under his breath.

"Let's eat and go to bed," he mumbled, eyes flicking away towards the kitchen and body following after. Makoto followed him and sat down at the kitchen table, knowing that he wasn't exactly helpful when it came to cooking. He laid his head down against the hard wood and watched Haru walk around, grabbing whatever it was he wanted to make.

Makoto closed his eyes and yawned once more. He'd try to do better to behave tomorrow, but really, how could Haru expect him to not smile when he was around?


End file.
